Butterfly Balance Wellness Center

Hungry for Change

I just saw an interesting trailer for a film called Hungry For Change, from the producers/directors of Food Matters, which you may have heard of.  I really support the notion of food being very powerful and being a vital part of our wellness and balance. This movie looks to discuss the diet and health industry and the lies that we are being told about what we allegedly nourish ourselves with in terms of food.

The trailer appears below, and you can then go to the Hungry for Change website to sign up for a link to view the entire movie for free from March 21 through March 31, 2012. From the website:

 "HUNGRY FOR CHANGE exposes shocking secrets the diet, weightloss and food industry don't want you to know about. Deceptive strategies designed to keep you craving more and more.

Could the foods we are eating actually be keeping us stuck in the diet trap?

In this free online premiere event you'll discover:

• How to navigate your supermarket - what to buy and what to avoid

• The real truth behind "DIET", "SUGAR-FREE" and "FAT-FREE" products

• How to overcome food addictions and cravings

• Why fad diets don’t work

• What food additives to avoid and how to read labels

• What is fat and cellulite and how do we get rid of it for good

• The most effective detox and cleansing strategies, and

• How to eat for clear eyes, glowing skin and healthy hair

Find out what's keeping you from having the body and health you deserve and how to escape the diet trap forever.

Featuring interviews with best selling health authors and leading medical experts plus real life transformational stories from those who know what it’s like to be sick and overweight.

Learn from those who have been there before and continue your health journey today."

Here's the trailer. Let me know what you think after you watch it, and don't forget to sign up to attend the free online preview at the end of March.

 

 

New Beginnings and Visions

I was recently working with life coach Andrea Owen at Your Kick Ass Life Coaching about my practice. With her guidance I was able to visualize where I want to see my energy work practice by the year 2025, and what it would take in the years between now and then to get that vision to become reality.

I realized that while I was grateful to have had the office space at ActivSpace, it was time to move on. My clientele is growing and I was quickly outgrowing the small space. I sat down and made a list of everything I wanted in my next office: a larger treatment room, a quiet and more professional environment, a waiting room, a conference room to hold free community talks on health and wellness topics, and a more convenient location. I wrote a Craigslist ad in the commercial real estate section asking for leads on that type of space. The next day an ad appeared from someone renting space that was exactly what I had asked for! (Thanks, Universe!)

Yesterday I turned over the keys to my old office and am thrilled to now be working out of my new office which better reflects my "big picture" vision!

I am now taking appointments at 3515 SW Alaska Street (2nd Floor) in West Seattle. It is a 2-story brick building on SW Alaska Street between 35th and 36th Streets. There is a small parking lot located mid-block in the alley behind the building (enter from 35th or 36th, first driveway south of Alaska), and it brings you directly to the second floor entrance. The bus stop is directly out front for easy access from much of West Seattle and also downtown Seattle. Click on the Contact tab above for a photo of the building and a link for driving directions.

Stay tuned for information about an Open House to celebrate the new location, and I will soon announce free monthly sessions to discuss health and wellness topics. I can't wait to serve your wellness needs at the new and improved Butterfly Balance Wellness Center; you can book an appointment right now online by clicking the button below. See you soon!

 

Butterfly Balance Featured in Seattle Natural Awakenings

I was recently interviewed for an article in the January 2012 issue of Seattle Natural Awakenings Magazine about Health Kinesiology, along with my friend and fellow HK practitioner Bobbie Rice of Sacred Elements in Minnesota.

Right now, to my knowledge, I am the only HK practitioner in the Seattle area, so unless you've met me, seen me as a client, or read this blog, it's likely you haven't heard of it before. I absolutely love the work that I do and the results I've seen in my clients, and I'd like to make Health Kinesiology a household name in Seattle!

I love this quote from Bobbie in the article:

“[Health Kinesiology] helps
people go inside themselves
and clear out those things that
are keeping them stuck, so that
they can move forward without
extra junk holding them back.”

I hope you'll take the time to read the article, learn more about my practice and the Health Kinesiology work that I am so passionate about. Click here to download the pdf of the article:

Download Health Kinesiology Article in Seattle Natural Awakenings (pdf)(1066.6K)

Please contact me with any questions you have about Health Kinesiology after reading the article, and I'd be honored to work with you as a client. You can book an appointment now by clicking on the button below. Ask me about my new client special and multi-session discounts.

 

 

Compassion for Everyone? How About You?

One definition I found online for compassion says "Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it." That's a pretty nice quality, don't you think? We can do a lot of good in the world if we're mindful of what others are going through, being kind and supportive and helping them with what they are going through. And I think the average person who thinks of themselves as a "good person" strives to do just that. As Thich Nhat Hanh said, "With compassion in our heart, every thought, word and deed can bring about a miracle."

But what about you? What about self-compassion? Why is it that we can be compassionate towards others without blinking an eye, but we can be so hard on ourselves, saying things in our heads that we'd never take from anyone else? Where's YOUR miracle?

Many years ago I was taking some verbal abuse from someone, and a friend said to me "what is it in you that lets you allow her to talk to you like that?" It was a hard thing to hear, and actually made me cry - because it was an extremely caring thing for someone to reach out and say that to me, and let me realize that I deserved better.

So, I say to you now: "What is it in you that allows YOU to talk to yourself like that?"

Would you like help getting rid of the internal blocks that keep you repeating that same pattern? Health Kinesiology can help you get to the bottom of that junk holding you back and make lasting corrections to it. Don't you deserve the same compassion that you so readily give to others? Click the BookNow button below to set up an appointment today.

 

When Good Resolutions Aren't Good

I always find it interesting to watch the marketing of New Years Resolutions. I walked into Costco a few days before New Years, and the entryway was lined with diet programs, exercise machines, scales, stop-smoking systems, books on health and fitness - you name the typical resolution, there was a solution right there for the taking.

On January 1st I was watching TV, and not 10 minutes into turning it on, I was greeted by a commercial about how you need to start the New Year off right by having weight loss surgery. (Uh, no thanks!)

 

Sure, I've made my share of Resolutions in my lifetime, and there's such a high failure rate on them if you talk to people in February each year. It wasn't until I tried applying the concepts of Health Kinesiology to New Years Resolutions that I started to understand why that might be.

You are a unique, beautiful individual. You can come into my office with the same issue as another client, but your body will have an entirely different, unique way to deal with that issue. And sometimes an issue that sounds like a "no-brainer" in terms of benefit to someone/everyone will have all kinds of issues tied up in it for you that make it not the best thing to pursue without doing other work first. Let me explain.

One of the most popular New Years Resolutions is for people to change their eating habits and choose "better" food. What exactly is "better" foods? Sounds pretty reasonable to think that "everyone" would be better off if we ate more vegetables, for instance. But what if you're allergic to a certain vegetable and don't even realize it? You'll eat it, not feel your best, and then stop trying to eat "better." Or you might have tried to diet many, many times (like I have) and gained all the weight back. Your self-critic might be telling you that you'll fail this time like you always did. Or perhaps a friend or relative was unkind to you regarding you giving up on your diet in the past, so the thought of dieting is stressful to your energy system, putting you out of balance.

Not every seemingly "good" resolution is good for everyone. Want to ask your body some questions about what would be good for you? Or do some work to clear out the junk holding you back from achieving those goals? A Health Kinesiology session might be just what you need to find out what your body is telling you it wants and needs to be the best person you can be in 2012.

 

 

Reframing and Reconnecting

I've just returned from a vacation in New York City, which is my birthplace and the area in which I lived until I moved to Seattle in 2004. I don't believe I've talked a lot about it here on my website, but the events of 9/11/01 were a huge catalyst in my moving away. I was in Manhattan that day, and being as energy sensitive as I am, I took on a lot of the negative energy of that time from those around me, and my own experiential trauma. As you might imagine, this was a difficult time for me.

I have done a lot of work with Health Kinesiology in dealing with the stressors of the days' events, as well as just living in New York City in general. I try to return to New York once a year or so to visit with friends and family, and in the past it has triggered those same feelings, and it was difficult again.

This visit was profoundly different, for which I am very grateful. I've spent a lot of time dwelling on the stress of New York (physically, mentally and energetically) in the past. But this time I decided I would fill my calendar with things that bring me joy. I used to work across the street from Central Park and found serenity on its winding paths. I enjoy the quiet and museum-quality art of St. Patrick's Cathedral. The United Nations' meditation room is a very special place of quiet and peace. And, of course, surrounding myself with loved ones that I have missed visiting with. I realized that through Health Kinesiology corrections I was finally ready to reframe my experiences and reconnect with the things I truly loved about New York City, finally finding peace and the ability to move on.

Is there something you would like to reframe and reconnect with? I would love to work with you towards those goals, knowing from personal experience how it's helped me.

 

Do Nothing

Feeling bombarded by messages to continually multi-task and do everything at once? I can relate to this at times.

I found this fascinating website which encourages you to do absolutely nothing for 2 minutes except listen to the waves. I clicked on it and closed my eyes, listening to the waves as a countdown timer on the screen counted down 2 minutes. I spent most of those 2 minutes with my mind racing, thinking about other things I "should" be doing, or would be doing as soon as my 2 minutes were up, and I managed to open my eyes at least 3 times to look at the clock before my 2 minutes were up.

Wow. That was eye-opening. And I'll bet I'm not alone.

Try it out for yourself at Do Nothing for 2 Minutes and then come back and tell me how it went for you.

I'm going to bookmark this site and practice doing nothing for a change. How about you?

 

 

Insights Into Job Stress and How to Manage It

Almost everyone I know has been asked at a doctor's office if they are "stressed out" and most people (myself included) tend to laugh at that, and think "well, of course I'm stressed out ... who isn't?"

I read this article today called "Job Stress? How to Keep Catastrophic Thoughts from Killing You" which was really interesting because it just didn't commiserate with you for being stressed, but explained some of the reasoning behind how our bodies react to stress and what happens when we overreact to things that shouldn't have a "life or death" stress reaction from us.

From the article:

"Chronic stress kills more people every year than traffic accidents, nicotine, or alcohol from the host of conditions it stokes, from heart disease to strokes, yet we hear next to nothing about it -- no anti-stress ad campaigns like the anti-smoking spots. In Britain, they take work stress seriously enough that the law requires that companies there undergo regular stress audits. Can you imagine that happening here?"

The article explains how our body deals with (and can overreact to) stress:

"The problem is a design flaw in our brains that leaves us prone to false emergencies. We were designed for life-and-death struggles on African savannas, not overflowing in-boxes or sales quotas. That's especially true for the part of your brain that sets off the stress response, the amygdala, a hub of the emotional brain, the ancient limbic system, which ran operations before we evolved the higher brain organs that can make decisions based on reason and analysis, not raw emotion.

In times of perceived danger the amygdala hijacks the 21st century brain and takes the helm again. This ancient alarm system is as good at measuring threats in the workplace as a yardstick is at calculating the distance to the sun. A hundred and fifty emails a day is a hassle, but it's not life-or-death. But if an overloaded inbox makes you feel you can't cope, off goes the signal that sets off the stress response, which floods your body with hormones that suppress your immune system to help you fight or run ... away from your computer?"

Robinson's article gives some great advice on handling stress. Health Kinesiology is also extremely helpful in dealing with things that stress our bodies and energy system, and it can be very effective even when you don't know consciously what is stressing you out. Even when you don't think you know the cause, your body knows on an energetic level.

I can help you to discover what those stressors are and help your body to no longer overreact to them. I had some things that were stressing me out to the point of them being phobias, and I had a far more intense reaction to them than would be perceived as "normal." Using Health Kinesiology, I was able to easily and quickly take the charge off that issue and face it in a far more reasonable way. It's been life-changing for me! I hope you will let me help you find that place of peace around the things that are stressing you. Click below to book an appointment:

 

The Importance of Sleep and Its Effects on Health

I was recently talking about sleep (or lack thereof) on the Butterfly Balance Facebook page and from the discussion it sounded like I'm definitely not the only one who's dealing with not getting enough sleep.

What is it about sleep that makes it seem almost optional? I know when I'm overwhelmed and have too much to do, it seems easiest to cut sleep out; something else always seems "more important" and I can always "make it up" later. Unfortunately, sleep doesn't really work like that. And when we let ourself get way too tired, we often turn to things like caffeine and/or sugar to "wake us up" which then have other detrimental effects on our health, on top of the sleep deprivation.

I have even heard that people who drive when very tired have a level of impairment not unlike driving after drinking!

During this past week, my schedule was so full that if I got 6 hours of sleep a night, it was a lot. By Friday I was nearly delirious, I was so sleep deprived. So it was interesting and timely to see this link to a Bastyr University natural medicine blog post called "What is so important about sleep?"

In this article they mention that adults should have 7-9 hours of sleep a night. 7 hours is about the maximum that I get, and I'm sure I could use more. Also from the article are these benefits of sleep and risk of not enough sleep:

"Some negative outcomes of inadequate sleep include:

• Increased level of systemic inflammation, which can be a predisposing factor in the development of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.
• Increased overall pain response.
• Decreased immune response to illnesses such as the common cold.
• Decreased circulating melatonin, which has been found to have anti-rheumatic and anti-autoimmune activity and thus may help in conditions such as multiple sclerosis and scleroderma

 Some benefits of adequate sleep quantity and quality include:

• Increased immune function.
• Increased cognitive function.
• Increased wound healing."

Sleep is such a vital component to good health. Would you cut out eating because you needed more time in your day? Or show up at work an hour or two late for work because you needed more time in your day? So why is it okay to take an extra hour or two away from sleep?

For me, the answer is to reevaluate the things I schedule. I just can't say "yes" to everything. I know I've hit a state of overwhelm when even fun things I love to do feel like an obligation. There really are only so many hours in a day!

Did you know that sleep deprivation has actually been used as a form of torture? I found this article about sleep deprivation as torture, that said in part:

"Deprivation of sleep can raise many physical and mental inabilities in a human body. It also considered as a most cruel torture, termed as sleep deprivation torture. This is one of the most effective and brutal way of torture, used on victims, to make them mentally and physically weak. In this way, they easily accept their crime. In sleep deprivation torture, victims are not allowed to sleep for many days, at a time. And, finally when they are permitted to sleep, then disrupt their sleep many times and then interrogate them. Questions are asked to them without having sleep for many hours.

In sleep deprivation torture, the victim who is tortured, feels like going to die. Legs become unsteady and request only for one thing; to sleep. The one, who has experienced the sleep deprivation torture, cannot assume even hunger and thirst, to compare with it. Sleep deprivation is not just a complaint of few people, suffering from it. It is serious problem, which can cause severe health complications and conditions, for human body. Sleep deprivation torture is a traditional way of torture someone, but nowadays, it is used as a treatment for mental sickness and depressions of various types.

This problem is now becoming common in nowadays society. Due to toxics and pollution, the problem of sleep deprivation is increasing rapidly. Sleep deprivation is so stressful condition and it could be deadly if increases with the time. It can make a person disoriented and can mix up the mind so that a person suffering from sleep deprivation, feels like passing through a torture. Due to lack of sleep or sleep deprivation, a person may face irritation, weakness of vision, garbled speech, and lack of memory, confusion, hallucination, nausea and ultimately death."

I can actually do a workup using Health Kinesiology that can determine your body's personalized need for sleep, from how many hours to what time you should be in bed for the most restorative, healing sleep.

Are you getting enough sleep? If not, what steps can you take to fix that? Be kind to yourself by putting yourself first!

 

 

Free Event: Discover Natural Solutions for Optimal Health

 
I am hoping to attend this free event in Federal Way, WA this coming Saturday, 2/26, at 11:00 a.m. and wanted to pass this along to anyone else interested in attending.

Special Speaker is J.R. Celski, Olympic Medalist, who overcame his potentially career-ending injuries using natural products from AIM Nutrition.

I personally use AIM products and highly recommend them. Many Health Kinesiology clients are using these nutritional products with beneficial effects to their health. Come to this no-obligation, free event to learn more about the products, as well as this page on my website and my AIM store.

Note: I am not the one arranging for this event - just passing along the information - so any questions should be directed to the contact listed on the flyer photo above.